From sleeping on the backseat of a car to the lead role in a hit Netflix series, the Outer Banks star is finally able to help make the world a better place.
Chase Stokes has come a long way in a few years. It’s 10am in LA and he’s up early. Not for our call, for his one-year-old puppy that has “lost his mind” this morning. Originally from Maryland, the 28-year-old actor now calls Hollywood his home, as you would expect from the industry’s rising star.
Fame landed pretty quickly at his feet, thanks – in part – to his lead role in the hit Netflix series Outer Banks. But Stokes says he doesn’t get any preferential treatment from friends and family. To them, he’s still just the boy who was sleeping in his car and on friends’ sofas as he tried to break into acting. His first LA dwelling – a 400 square foot studio – didn’t make them think any differently either. Whilst they may overlook Stokes’ flash pads, and seeing his face plastered across the internet as everyone’s new infatuation might have become commonplace, there’s no doubt that the people around him respect what it took for Stokes to reach this point.
In his last on screen appearance, Stokes and his on (and off) screen romance, Madelyn Cline, narrowly escaped drowning at sea. They warm themselves with hot drinks and blankets as they discover that the next leg of their adventure is taking them to the Bahamas. Then season one of Outer Banks comes to an end, and the fate of Hollywood’s new favourite couple hangs in the balance.
On the day of our call, the release of season two of Outer Banks is just over a week away. Stokes looks far warmer and much drier now; his laidback, surfer boy aesthetic attested by his vest and baseball cap, worn backwards of course. A dog appears from the door behind and jumps up next to him, briefly interrupting Stokes as he explains that if you really want to get to know who he is, you don’t have to look much further than his Outer Banks character, John B.
“I think we kind of share a lot of similarities but we also have a lot of differences,” Stokes explains, with the same composure and assuredness as John B. “I mean one of the big things for me that’s always interesting with a character like this is he’s such an impulse person. I’m a little bit more calculated in the way I go about things..."
Chase wears Alexander McQueen on the cover of Man About Town's AW21 issue.
Photography: Pat Martin
Styling: Avo Yermagyan
Grooming: Marissa Machado for Art Department using Monat
Words: Ry Gavin
Editor: Mike Christensen
Production: Sam Geroldi
Editorial director: Huw Gwyther
Please note: additional duties and taxes may apply depending on your country and delivery address.
